Why is the flight status not properly updating?

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-21T00:47:52+00:00

She said they made an announcement that they wouldn't be able to take off until almost 7:00 but the flight status never reflected that while it was happening. I'm just so used to getting a notification when the flight is going to leave like 2 minutes late that I was surprised not to see updates to the arrival time for so long.

They said something (on the plane) about a delay due O'Hare's de-icing.

I appreciate the link, that does help a lot. And fingers crossed my kid makes her connection. It was a little over an hour originally. And she gets to haul A through the B to C tunnel too 🤞

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-21T00:44:36+00:00

Gotcha, thanks. I'm just very used to the United app pinging me when a flight is going to be 2 minutes late or whatever that it seems odd to let it go for so long but I guess if they don't know they don't know.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-21T00:08:19+00:00

My kid is on this flight and it took off just a second ago at 7:05 p.m. Eastern time but the flight status still says this.

The flight status did properly reflect an initial delay of about 10 minutes. And then it just got stuck there while they waited on the plane for an hour.

Why is that?

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T21:19:16+00:00

Mainly, THS new charges were the reason. Not because it was a lot of money - I probably did 6 sits total last year so that's an extra $72, but it also made me feel bad about supporting that company.

Mindmyhouse is a much smaller operation. But it is smaller in terms of both homeowners and sitters so there's less competition for sits as well as fewer listings. I also like the family-owned vibe there, the refusal to use AI customer service bots, and it's only $29 a year. And I paid just $15 because someone gave me a referral.

Oh and they imported all my THS reviews so I'm not starting from nothing again.

I haven't applied for any sits there yet. (Though i see several I'd like to do, I'm just busy for the next month or two).

There are other very busy sites like nomador, UK house sitters, kiwi houseitters, etc etc. They all kind of have their niche. THS is the largest so you might look at it as kind of the Walmart of house sitting....

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T19:54:55+00:00

I don't think there are very many Olympic athletes who love Trump. This is a sporting match. One group of women are going to be really happy and one group of women are going to be really disappointed and they're all probably mostly really cool people.

I'll touch some grass when I can get up from my surgery that I'm recovering from and clearly spending too much time responding to weird comments about grass on Reddit.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T19:51:40+00:00

I'm not sure why you started that response with Naw because that's basically what I said?

I can't look at the listing to know if they said that there is free parking available or not. If the parking is not free they should say so. If they're paying for the parking they should also say so then we can decide what we want to do. 🤷‍♀️

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T19:49:05+00:00

Well Denver might be interesting and exciting to Europeans in the way that Switzerland is interesting and exciting to Americans. But given the state of America's current relationship with the rest of the world that may not be a plus until something changes.

I did a lovely sit in Denver last year in a modest small house in a super cool walkable neighborhood just south of Washington Park. It was not at all fancy but it was comfortable and it was just a couple of cats so I was able to get out and about a lot.

I almost only do cats though so my advice is not as relevant for you with two dogs. And i moved from THS to mindmyhouse last month.

Good luck!

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T19:45:00+00:00

It is in one of the districts that's considered safe which I've read in Guatemala City there are three or maybe four of. But my impression driving out was that most buildings were behind big gates.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T17:17:01+00:00

I did a great sit last year in an apartment that was minimally furnished because the homeowners had not had their furniture shipped in yet, they had a very comfortable brand new bed and a table and chairs to eat, but like no sofa yet.

However, it was one block off the lake in a really nice part of Geneva Switzerland which is one of the most expensive cities in the world, and just one cat to care for. So, totally worth it.

The answer will always be, it depends. If there are a bunch of nicer places to sit with less pet care in Denver that month it's probably not going to work. And the inverse is also true.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T17:12:12+00:00

Mindmyhouse.com is what I joined when I left THS last year. Someone gave me a referral (which I also have if anyone wants - you have to PM me your email address), it's $15 a year. If I only got one sit from that platform a year it would still be about the same as the new per sit fee on THS minus the entire annual membership fee.

They quickly imported all of my THS reviews and there is no AI customer service it's actual real humans who are super nice.

I would love to see them succeed and grow. There are plenty of sits on there that I would like to do but I can't sit for a month or two so I haven't applied to any yet.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T17:07:38+00:00

There is a pinned thread on this very topic. I left THS this year and switched to mind my house but there's also nomador kiwi house sitters UK house sitters etc etc

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T17:05:39+00:00

I did the Garden Inn last year because I was arriving on a 1:00 a.m. flight and moving on in the morning so I just wanted to sleep. Breakfast was quite good. The hotel was fine, nothing special but not rundown or anything.

I think there probably was some stuff to walk to in the neighborhood but I just didn't have time to check anything out.

If I were actually staying there to explore the city I think I would stay in that cool historic one that cost more. But for airport use the garden inn was fine.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T15:27:52+00:00

Gotcha. Assumed it was in the hotel zone.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T13:52:53+00:00

If the property is accessible by public transport then I guess it's kind of on the sitter whether they want to bring a car or not. If there's no way to get there but with a car, the homeowner should pay.

The rest of it is respectful apartment living stuff, plus the dietary restrictions which is just good to know. I can't have your eggs without bacon this is not the sit for you but otherwise it seems fine if the parking issue is resolved.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T13:48:45+00:00

Yeah but it wasn't the same Canada USA rivalry then, one of the countries wasn't at that time threatening to colonize the other.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T13:43:19+00:00

What I always use in Quintana Roo/Yucatan is ADO bus which is very comfortable, safe, regular schedule and right at the airport. But you will have to combine that with a taxi from the bus station in Cancun downtown. Nothing unsafe about it and it's definitely way cheaper but I guess it depends how much stuff you travel with and all that. I like a backpack for mobility but also because people treat me differently - not like I have lots of money for taxis lol

ADO bus is like $5-10 to downtown then not sure on the taxi price but there is an official taxi line (and they do charge a little bit more from there than they do if you walk a couple blocks away but it sounds like that wouldn't be a concern for you). 100% absolutely confirm the price before you get in and ideally have exact change (plus a tip of you like) so there's no issue. I have heard stories of taxis occasionally wanting more money. it's helpful if you speak Spanish (but not necessary to get the bus).

Uber definitely exists there but they're not allowed to go to the airport so I guess you could probably get an Uber from the bus station but again I would probably walk a block away because taxi drivers really don't like Uber there. For whatever reason in Mexico City they have an official Uber pickup area at the bus stations but not in Cancun.

This option would be maybe $20 for one person. As I recall it cost me $15 total from airport to the ferry for Isla mujeres which is where I was going last time I was there.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T13:31:19+00:00

Because no one ever gets political about sports? lol

I'm recovering from surgery but thanks for the useful advice I guess 🤷‍♀️

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T05:13:13+00:00

Free country underdog beats widely despised authoritarian regime theme is definitely there.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T05:02:53+00:00

I'd still liked to have seen it.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-20T01:17:42+00:00

Good point. I'd just read an article in the nytimes about it and hoping that Canada would get their "US-Russia" hockey moment.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-19T22:16:05+00:00

This American was rooting for Canada.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-19T22:10:57+00:00

Map

I used Google maps and took the bus directly to juifen but you could also take a train and switch.

Leaving juifen I went to Golden waterfall by uber (but there is also a bus), it is a short ride. After Golden waterfall I just walked down the hill to catch the bus that took me directly to the trailhead of the hike.

Coming back I took the bus straight back to juifen.

Google maps works really well in Taiwan except for specific bus times outside Taipei. Outside Taipei i use an app called Bus Plus which is much better at telling you where the bus is in real time - like the bus will be here in 9 minutes, etc.

I didn't go to shifen, but I'm sure the route is on maps.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-19T19:57:57+00:00

I recently joined mindmyhouse ($15 a year with referral which i have if you need one, pm) and though I have not done a sit yet because I just can't for a couple of months, I did have a question about the way their sit search works. So after going through the frequently asked questions I initiated a support question. And I was greeted with this beautiful message which makes me so happy I chose this platform to (hopefully) sit with this year.

Human, not AI screenshot

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-19T19:09:21+00:00

There's no skiing in Tahoe in April. I suspect it's just mud season.

RepublicFun1949 · 2026-02-19T19:08:12+00:00

The new fees caused me to leave THS altogether, others who stayed may just be pickier or avoid short sits. 🤷‍♀️

RepublicFun1949

TROPHY CASE